STEVENS COUNTY, Wash. — With smoke filling the skies of eastern Washington, firefighters are using artificial intelligence-powered cameras to spot the next wildfire before it burns out of control.
Stevens County Fire District 1 began using the AI technology last year to detect wildfire smoke in its earliest stages. Fire Chief Mike Bucy says the department is relying on it even more this year.
“We’re using it even more as things started to pop up earlier in the season than normal,” Bucy said.
The panoramic cameras offer a 360-degree view of the region. The public can check out these views on Washington’s Department of Natural Resources website, but firefighters have access to a special AI feature that alerts them when smoke is detected.
“My phone will go off in the middle of the night alerting us — and same with the crew members — that there’s something going on that we need to be aware of and check out,” Bucy said.
When the cameras detect smoke, firefighters can get out the door faster. When multiple cameras pick up the same plume of smoke, it helps crews pinpoint the exact source of the flames.
“This year, it seems like the accuracy is a lot better than it has been in the past,” Bucy said.
Currently, 26 of these cameras are scattered throughout Washington state. The Department of Natural Resources is adding 10 more cameras across the state before fire season ends. The location of the new cameras will be finalized next week.
“The decision to place the cameras where we did was based on where fire occurs most often, how much DNR protected land is within the view of that camera,” said Angela Lane, with Washington DNR Wildland Fire Management Division.
“I wish you had one on every block or every mountaintop. But we know that’s not feasible. But I’m not here to complain about what we have in place right now because it’s helped tremendously,” said Bucy.
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